Climate, Jobs and Justice Newsletter: Feb 2024
Edition 13
English | Spanish
SEIU members and worker leaders in the Fight for $15 and a Union are confronted daily by the impacts of climate change and environmental injustice. This newsletter offers a snapshot of how we’re combating climate change and fighting against environmental injustice in our workplaces and communities as well as calling on major industries, corporations, and governments to protect the health, safety and long-term economic well-being of all working people across America.
El Nino and Nina - What does that mean? How does it affect us?
El Nino and La Nina are global climate patterns that have opposite impacts on our weather. El Nino causes the Northern US and Canada to be warmer and dryer while the US South and the Gulf are rainier than normal. This summer we experienced an El Nino, causing already increasing temperatures to be even worse and contributing to the dry conditions needed to fuel fires like the catastrophic Canadian wildfires. We are now transitioning into a La Nina, which brings extremes of drought (in the US South) and heavy rains (in the Pacific Northwest), and can lead to a more active hurricane season. To read more about these weather patterns and this Summer’s projections visit:
How El Niño Will Influence 2024 Weather
People Power in Action!!
Update on President Biden’s new rules on soot pollution
Earlier in February, SEIU issued the following release on the Biden EPA’s finalized regulations that help reduce dangerous soot pollution in the United States:
All people deserve to breathe clean air, but it is well-documented that people of color and low-wage workers disproportionately live in communities affected by pollution. On February 7, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced its final standard updating the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for soot pollution. This new standard will improve public health outcomes including reducing serious asthma attacks and frequency of emergency room visits, while decreasing missed work and school days resulting from these events.
SEIU members of all backgrounds are fighting for environmental justice through the Center for American Progress’s “Solution for Pollution” campaign, which has driven thousands of public comments that helped shape rules such as these.
“SEIU’s 2 million members across the service and care economy are largely Black, brown, immigrants, Indigenous and AAPI, and live in communities that are disproportionately affected by pollution, climate change, and extreme weather events,” said SEIU President Mary Kay Henry. “Our members were able to help shape the EPA’s new rules to reduce soot pollution by submitting public comments, and we’re pleased the final rules prioritize people over corporations’ profits. Along with the Biden Administration’s historic investment to address climate change and create hundreds of thousands of green union jobs, working people are making significant progress in environmental justice. Still, we’re eager to accelerate the pace of action.”
Black and brown communities in this country have long suffered the consequences of policies that inflicted glaring disparities in soot exposure compared with white Americans. They are also more likely to be confronted with environmental and health hazards at work and are less likely to receive adequate protection from them.
SEIU members like Judith Howell, a security officer from Washington, DC, believe that their unions have a role to play when it comes to addressing these disparities and saving the planet.
“The fight for climate justice is critical for my union,” Howell said.”We believe working people can & must be part of the process of reversing climate change!"
Keep the Climate Action and Environmental Justice Promise
President Biden’s impressive work since 2021 to tackle the climate crisis, including passing the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), and the Justice40 initiative, have put us on the path to reducing climate pollution by 50% this decade and advancing the cause environmental justice. But much of these gains will be in jeopardy if the EPA doesn't act to finalize the strongest possible rules by this May.
Here’s how YOU can help: Sign this petition, calling on EPA Administrator Michael Regan to act swiftly to finalize and implement strong pollution standards no later than May 2024. Learn more about the Solutions to Pollution Campaign here.
Environmental Justice and Climate Work at Locals
This month we celebrated the 5th anniversary of the introduction of the Green New Deal. 32BJ SEIU member Judith Howell joined Senator Markey, Representative Ocasio-Cortez, and other leaders at a press conference conference at the Capitol.
Retweet this Twitter post commemorating the day
https://x.com/MaryKayHenry/status/1754979647865971047?s=20
Local 1991 continues to lead the work on making their hospital facilities more environmentally friendly. Last Fall they received a grant from the Clean Energy Group to conduct a feasibility study on solar at Jackson Memorial Hospital. Now, they are partnering with the Climate Jobs National Resource Center and American Micorgrids to conduct the study that will be out early next month. Their goal is to chart a path forward to be able to use IRA funds to transition to solar power at the massive Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami.
Updated Feb 28, 2024